THE ART AND SCIENCE OF LITIGATION

What’s the best way to master a conflict? How can we maximize the odds of winning?

Fundamentals first: Quality and precision in investigating the facts, analyzing the law, working with experts, examining witnesses and presenting arguments are a fundamental building block. Indeed, just getting these fundamentals right already makes litigation a specialty.

Yet, for us, this is not the end but just the beginning. Litigation as an art and a science takes the specialty a couple of steps further. What makes a great litigator? It’s someone who knows strategy and tactics, who uses the left brain and the right brain, who combines imagination and discipline, who can play defense and offense.

Sun Tzu said: „Know thy self, know thy enemy.” For us, this means: Fully understanding the company’s overarching objectives and specific needs, and putting ourselves in the shoes of the opponent. Thus, we can always stay a couple of steps ahead.

And whether in the courtroom, with regulators or in the media, a great litigator will never just rely on impeccable legal argumentation, but will convince with a compelling story, taking advantage of tested rhetorical tools and the powerful insights of cognitive psychology.

This is our specialty. All of the above. We will leave no stone unturned. We will make full use of the art and the science of litigation to make sure you come out stronger.

STRATEGY

How did Hannibal manage to defeat the Romans at the Battle of Cannae? He had a strategy. Many people talk about strategy. Only few can develop one methodically; instead, most rely on tactics.

However: “Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.” (Sun Tzu).

Drawing on military history in particular, we have studied methods for developing strategies. They allow us to map out your conflict comprehensively, considering different alternatives along with their inherent uncertainties, and to meet your opponent when and where it is most advantageous for you.

COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY

Cognitive psychology gives us powerful insights into how the mind processes information.

When human beings make decisions and judgments, they are subject to a wide range of cognitive biases, such as loss aversion, availability heuristic, over-confidence, status quo bias, and anchoring. Judges, corporate executives, regulators and politicians are no different in this regard. They are human beings, too, after all.

Therefore, understanding the cognitive limitations of decision-making puts you in a much better position to persuade others and to frame the case to your advantage, whether in the courtroom, in a regulatory submission, or in the media.

STORYTELLING

Once upon a time… Since the beginning of mankind, people have passed on information through stories.

Telling stories, listening to stories: it is hard-wired into the human brain, and therefore the most effective way to get your message across. The best litigators are, not by coincidence, masterful storytellers. Storytelling is a skill we have practiced and honed.

How can we capture the imagination of our audience, whether it’s a judge or a regulator? Who is the villain, who is the hero? We will make your case by weaving together facts and legal arguments into a compelling, persuasive story.

PROBABILITIES

What are the chances of success? Will the judge grant interim relief? How does a settlement compare to pursuing the litigation? Answering these questions almost always involves probabilities.

Indeed, when dealing with conflicts, it’s rare that we get to compute one single solution. Normally, we must evaluate a range of different possible outcomes. Of course, making probabilistic assessments is hard and often imprecise.

However, without it, there can be no strategy, no risk analysis, no weighing of options. That’s why we use proven methods to assess probabilities at the outset of your case and also, critically, along the way.

GAME THEORY

Game theory helps us with analyzing situations in which parties – called “players” – make decisions that depend on each other.

Litigation is a prime example of such interdependence. And it makes game theory a particularly useful tool for us. It helps us to systematically think through multiple decisions that both you and your opponent might take during the dispute – similar to what a sophisticated chess player does.

As a result, you will always be one step ahead.